Downers Grove man dies in Iraq

Sara Olkon, Tribune staff reporterCHICAGO TRIBUNE

The family of Marine Sgt. Thomas Gilbert, 24, of Downers Grove, upon learning that he was killed in Iraq on his second tour of duty, said in a statement Thursday, "He died in the highest calling on Earth--defending our freedom."

"Tom had three great loves in his life--his family, the outdoors and the Marines," the family said. "Tom was a true American hero."

Gilbert died Wednesday, but the military had not released details of how or where.

A 2000 graduate of Downers Grove North High School, Gilbert was a marketing major at Western Michigan University. He joined the Marine Reserve in September 2000, and his unit, Company A, First Battalion 124th, was based out of Grand Rapids, Mich., according to Capt. Tyson Dunkelberger, a Marine spokesman.

Douglas Kozlowski, director of marketing for the Village of Downers Grove who acted as a spokesman for the family, said Gilbert's parents and siblings were "completely devastated."

Friends recalled Gilbert as a proud Irishman and a happy-go-lucky sort who loved to hunt, hang with his buddies and ride his motorcycle.

"I felt like I had been kicked in the stomach," said Jennifer Vanderploeg, one of Gilbert's close friends from high school, describing her reaction at learning of his death Wednesday night. "He is the guy you never thought anything bad would happen to."

She described him as a "silent leader" whom other kids looked up to.

Gillian Zaremba, another high school classmate, said Gilbert managed to get along with just about everyone.

In the 2000 Cauldron, his high school yearbook, Gilbert showed a shy smile in his senior portrait and in posed shots with his varsity football and track teams. In a candid section, Gilbert was asked what he would miss most about high school. He answered, "Mr. Licata's fun homework assignments."

Dan Licata, an English teacher and football coach now at New Trier Township High School, taught a course on modern war. Gilbert took the class his senior year, the same time he committed to the military.

They studied, among other classics, "All Quiet on the Western Front," "Slaughterhouse-Five" and "Johnny Got His Gun."

"It dawned on me, `What was going through his mind when he read those war novels?'" said Licata, who was notified of Gilbert's death by Vanderploeg.

Gilbert was quiet, but especially mature and engaged in class, Licata said. On the football field, Licata said Gilbert was one of the hardest workers he knew. "It's a cliche, but he'd go through the wall for you."

Gilbert kept a profile on the social networking Web site MySpace.com. Among "TommyG's" favorite movies were "Black Hawk Down" and "Forrest Gump." Favorite books included "The Art of War," "Generation Kill: Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America, and the New Face of American War" and "Jarhead: A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles."

Among things he said he liked were: "cooking, reading, being Irish, my Harley, my family, and the Marine Corps.".

He went on to write that he wouldn't be back from Iraq until mid-April and expected to still be the "most **** Irish **** ever! Stay Classy Fallujah!" Funeral arrangements were pending, Kozlowski said.